Hong Kong – Culture and Religion

HONG KONG CULTURE AND RELIGION

The vast majority of Hong Kong residents are Chinese and practice a mixture of Buddhism, Taoism & Confucianism. Buddhism was introduced to China from India over two thousand years ago. Many would argue that Confucianism is more of a Chinese philosophy than a religion based on the teachings of Confucius who lived from 551 to 479 BC.

Taoism is also a culmination of different Chinese philosophies with an emphasis on humility, moderation and compassion. Throughout Hong Kong, there are over 600 temples, many hundreds of years old, where worshippers attend regularly.

As with most modern cities, Hong Kong has a wide variety of people and religions. The second biggest religion is Christianity with over half a million followers followed by Muslims, Hindus, Sikhs and Jews. Other beliefs include the idea of lucky numbers and Feng Shui. Feng Shui, which translates roughly as `wind & water`, aims to bring good `qi`(life energy) throughout man made buildings and environments to promote health, wealth, relationships, success, family and children.